1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a switchover device for switching over and sending information transmitted from a plurality of information sources to a plurality of information processing devices. This invention also relates to an information recording/reproducing apparatus equipped with the switchover device.
The present application claims priority from Japanese Application No. 2001-17352, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.
2. Description of the Related Prior Art
FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a conventional audio apparatus serving as an information recording/reproducing apparatus containing a plurality of information sources and a plurality of information processing devices.
As shown in FIG. 7, the conventional audio apparatus has a plurality of information sources including an optical disc reproducing section 1 for reproducing audio information recorded on an optical disc, an MD (Mini Disc) reproducing section 2 for reproducing information recorded on an MD, a cassette reproducing section 3 for reproducing information magnetically recorded on a cassette tape, and a reception tuner 4 for receiving broadcast electric wave.
The conventional audio apparatus also has a plurality of information processing devices for processing audio information transmitted from the information sources 1-4. In fact, the information processing devices include an audio reproducing/outputting section 7 having an amplifier 5 for amplifying an audio information supplied thereto, also include a speaker 6 for converting the audio information into a sound having an audible frequency. The information processing devices further include a recording section 8 for recording the received audio information on other recording mediums such as hard disk, MD, writable CD and DVD.
Further, conventional audio apparatus also has a plural-input/one-output type switchover device 9 for supplying the audio information transmitted from the information sources 1-4 to the audio reproducing/outputting section 7 and the recording section 8. Meanwhile, a controller 10 is provided to control the switching operation of the switchover device 9 in accordance with user's requirements. In detail, the switchover device 9 has a plurality of input contacts a-d individually connected to the respective outputs of the information sources 1-4, arranged in a manner such that only one input contact at each instant in time can be exclusively switched to the output contact in accordance with an instruction fed from the controller 10.
An operation of the conventional audio apparatus will be described below with reference to a function table shown in FIG. 8. As shown in the function table, during “operation mode 1”, once the switchover device 9 is connected with the input contact a, other input contacts b-d will be OFF. As a result, an audio information transmitted from the optical disc reproducing section 1 serving as an information source is supplied to a transmission line through the input contact a, so as to be supplied to the audio reproducing/outputting section 7 and the recording section 8. In this way, an audio information reproduced in the optical disc reproducing section 1 may be converted into an audible sound in the audio reproducing/outputting section 7, thereby allowing a user to enjoy the reproduced sound and at the same time to record the audio information on a desired recording medium in the recording section 8.
In “operation mode 2”, “operation mode 3” and “operation mode 4”, the input contacts b-d may also be switched individually and exclusively, thereby allowing any audio information fed from any of the information sources 2-4 to be converted into an audible sound in the audio reproducing/outputting section 7, thus allowing a user to enjoy the reproduced sound and at the same time to record the audio information on a desired recording medium in the recording section 8.
However, since the above-described conventional audio apparatus employs a plural-input/one-output type switchover device 9, only one transmission line (common transmission line for both reproducing/outputting and recording) is connected between the output contact on one hand and the audio reproducing/outputting section 7 as well as the recording section 8 on the other.
Namely, an audio information fed from the output contact of the switchover device 9 is transmitted through the common transmission line to the amplifier 5 of the reproducing/outputting section 7 as well as to the recording section 8. Consequently, an audio information transmitted from one information source (such as optical disc reproducing section 1) may be supplied through the common transmission line to the reproducing/outputting section 7 and to the recording section 8, thereby reproducing/outputting the sound and at the same time recording the outputted sound.
However, there is a restriction that the sound reproducing/outputting and sound recording are allowed to be performed only for an audio information transmitted from only one specific information source among the four information sources 1-4. Because of such restriction, it is impossible for a user to record one audio information transmitted from one information source (such as the optical disc reproducing section 1) and at the same time to reproduce/output another audio information transmitted from another information source (such as the reception tuner 4).
If the above problem is discussed in more detail, it is allowed to take for example a car stereo apparatus having an RDS information receiving function.
Namely, in the case where a car audio apparatus is mounted within a car, a user is allowed to switch ON the input contact a of the switchover device 9, so that an audio information such as a music recorded in an optical disc is reproduced in the optical disc reproducing section 1. Then, the audio information can be reproduced/outputted in the reproducing/outputting section 7 and at the same time recorded in the recording section 8. At this time, if another information source (which might be the reception tuner 4) operates to receive an RDS wave containing traffic information and supply the received RDS information to the user, the controller 10 is required to operate to turn-on the switchover device 9 with respect to the input contact d.
That is, when the reception tuner 4 receives an RDS electric wave and the controller 10 operates to forcibly turn-on the switchover device 9 with respect to the input contact d in order that the RDS information can be reproduced and outputted in the audio reproducing/outputting section 7, since the supply of the audio information from the optical disc reproducing section 1 to the recording section 8 is stopped, it is impossible to continue the recording of the audio information, thus bringing about an inconvenience to the user.
On the other hand, even if the user tries to continue the information recording in the recording section 8, he or she has to perform some additional operations (not shown) and give instructions to the controller 10 in order that the switchover device 9 can be forcibly turned from its ON state with the input contact d to its another ON state with the input contact a.
Moreover, if the user tries to continue the information recording and the switchover device 9 is forcibly turned to its ON state with the input contact a, it is impossible for the user to obtain RDS information (which is a useful traffic information). In other words, at any instant in time the user is allowed to have only one selection, i.e., either to continue the information recording by giving up RDS information, or to obtain RDS information by giving up the information recording, causing the user to have an inconvenient feeling.